Adding drama to her life

When Courteney Cox first read the script for “November,” a psychological thriller that is meant to keep you in suspense and likely to keep you in a state of enormous confusion, she thought two things: “Wow!” and “Huh?”

Though she might not have fully understood it at first, she knew she liked Benjamin Brand’s story of a woman’s struggle to cope with her boyfriend’s murder.

“It’s really confusing, but I loved the fact that it just made me think,” Cox said. “I got what it was trying to do. I got that it was trying to take you through a woman’s experience of tragedy and through all the stages. I loved that.

“And by the way,” she added, “when you read the script, it was much more confusing.”

Cox, now 41 and proud mother of 1-year-old daughter, Coco, was 38 at the time of production and still hadn’t shot the final season of “Friends.”

“November” has appeared at four film festivals (Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Sundance, where it won an award for cinematography) and will be released in theaters in New York and Los Angeles on Friday.

Shifting gears from the Emmy Award-winning comedy “Friends” to an independent film that was made in 15 days with a budget of $150,000 was a switch Cox was apparently eager to make. After sitting down with director Greg Harrison, who offered her the role without an audition, she gladly accepted the part.

“From our first meeting I was very impressed by her,” Harrison said. “She clearly had more potential as a dramatic actress than one would think, given her comedic performance on ‘Friends.’ ”

It was clearly the vision and the challenge that lured Cox, rather than the glamour and the dollars. Part of the production took place at producer Danielle Renfrew’s house, which became the apartment of Sophie, Cox’s character. Because the filmmakers couldn’t afford trailers, Renfrew persuaded her neighbors to let the crew take over their apartments as a staging area.

“That part wasn’t so bad. It could have been worse,” Cox said. “We could have been having to change outside or something.”

To ease any discomfort, there were homemade cookies sent by a crew member’s grandmother, which Cox called “the highlight of the day.”

As for Cox’s paycheck, well, she doesn’t remember receiving one. “I think by the time my agent and manager took a commission, there may have been a dollar,” she said with a laugh.

But this film wasn’t about all that for Cox. “It was great because everyone was there for the same reason,” Cox added. “It was to sink your teeth into something that everyone had passion for.”

And, she admits, it was nice to play someone other than “Friends’ ” Monica. “I know her backwards and forwards,” she said. “I loved Monica, but you still get tired of it.”

Not only was it a challenge for Cox to act like someone other than Monica, she had to do her best to make audiences not even think of Monica. She had 7 inches chopped off her hair and a gray streak added into it, and she wore thick-framed glasses and hardly any makeup in the film.

“In this movie, I feel like I didn’t notice Monica in it at all,” Cox said. “Your instincts would probably be to think about Monica, but I have to make sure you don’t.”

Although she said she did miss some of the perks that go along with starring in a show as successful as “Friends,” Cox said she would do another movie like “November” and would definitely work with Harrison again. “I just thought he had a really great vision, and he’s so smart and he’s so kind,” Cox said.

But now, Cox has other things on her mind, such as raising her daughter with husband David Arquette.

“I can’t even do anything without wanting to go home and see my baby girl,” she said.

That doesn’t mean she’s keeping herself away from the Hollywood spotlight.

Cox appeared briefly in the remake of “The Longest Yard,” starring Adam Sandler, and has roles in upcoming releases “Alpha Dog,” with Bruce Willis and Justin Timberlake, and next year’s “Zoom,” with Tim Allen. (“Alpha Dog,” based on the August 2000 slaying of 15-year-old Nick Markowitz, is slated for release later this year but is facing legal problems since the defense team of suspect Jesse James Hollywood argues it could lead to an unfair trial. “Zoom” is facing a copyright-infringement lawsuit from 20th Century Fox and Marvel Enterprises that claims Sony Pictures and Revolution Studios are ripping off the superhero theme of “X-Men.”)

Cox and Arquette also launched a production company called Coquette in 2004.

“I just kind of live a day at a time,” she said. “I’m not really planning too much. I am fortunate enough to not have to work, so it’s just really about doing things that are fun.”